'“Fwhat's yonder?” sez he.
'“Mutiny, Sorr,” sez the Sargint, an' the orf'cer bhoy begins pleadin'
pitiful to Crook to be let go: but divil a bit wud Crook budge.
'“Kape him there,” he sez, “'tis no child's work this day. By the
same token,” sez he, “I'll confishcate that iligant nickel-plated
scent-sprinkler av yours, for my own has been vomitin' dishgraceful!”
'The fork av his hand was black wid the backspit av the machine. So
he tuk the orf'cer bhoy's revolver. Ye may look, Sorr, by my faith,
_there's a dale more done in the field than iver gets into Field
Ordhers!_
'“Come on, Mulvaney,” sez Crook; “is this a Coort-martial?” The two av
us wint back together into the mess an' the Paythans were still standin'
up. They was not _too_ impart'nint though, for the Tyrone was callin'
wan to another to remimber Tim Coulan.
'Crook stopped outside av the strife an' looked anxious, his eyes
rowlin' roun'.
'“Fwhat is ut, Sorr?” sez I; “can I get ye anything?”
'“Where's a bugler?” sez he.
'I wint into the crowd--our men was dhrawin' breath behin' the Tyrone
who was fightin' like sowls in tormint--an' prisintly I came acrost
little Frehan, our bugler bhoy, pokin' roun' among the best wid a rifle
an' bay'nit.
'“Is amusin' yoursilf fwhat you're paid for, ye limb?” sez I, catchin'
him by the scruff. “Come out av that an' attind to your duty,” I sez;
but the bhoy was not pleased.
'“I've got wan,” sez he, grinnin', “big as you, Mulvaney, an' fair half
as ugly. Let me go get another.”
'I was dishplease dat the personability av that remark, so I tucks him
under my arm an' carries him to Crook who was watchin' how the fight
wint. Crook cuffs him till the bhoy cries, an' thin sez nothin' for a
whoile.
'The Paythans began to flicker onaisy, an' our men roared. “Opin ordher!
Double!” sez Crook. “Blow, child, blow for the honour of the British
Arrmy!”
'That bhoy blew like a typhoon, an' the Tyrone an' we opined out as the
Paythans broke, an' I saw that fwhat had gone before wud be kissin' an'
huggin' to fwhat was to come. We'd dhruv thim into a broad part av the
gut whin they gave, an' thin we opined out an' fair danced down the
valley, dhrivin' thim before us. Oh, 'twas lovely, an' stiddy, too!
There was the Sargints on the flanks av what was left av us, kapin'
touch, an' the fire was runnin' from flank to flank, an' the Paythans
was dhroppin'. We opined out wid the widenin' av the valley, an' whin
the valley narrowed we closed again like the shticks on a lady's fan,
an' at the far ind av the gut where they thried to stand, we fair blew
them off their feet, for we had expinded very little ammunition by
reason av the knife work.'
'Hi used thirty rounds goin' down that valley,' said Ortheris, 'an' it
was gentleman's work. Might 'a' done it in a white 'andkerchief an' pink
silk stockin's, that part. Hi was on in that piece.'
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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